2021 Condition of Education Report Released: The Institute of Education Sciences recently released the 2021 Condition of Education. This annual report contains key indicators for all levels of education, labor market outcomes and international comparisons. The biggest changes in the report this year include two spotlight indicators to examine the preliminary educational impacts of COVID-19 on online learning and on secondary and postsecondary education. Key findings from the report include:
- Two-thirds of K-12 students used online resources in a distance learning environment in September 2020.
- In 2018-19, the average cohort graduation rate for high school students was 86%, the highest rate since first measured in 2011.
- 66% of 2019 high school graduates enrolled in postsecondary education.
Report on Inequalities in Access to Technology: A new report from the Institute of Higher Education Policy examined polling data from New America and Third Way to highlight the inequalities different student populations face regarding technological challenges. The disparities in access to technology, such as lack of reliable internet access and sharing devices with others in the same household, disproportionately affect students of color, students from low-income backgrounds and students who are caretakers, which limits the learners’ ability to participate in higher education opportunities. To overcome these barriers so all students have access to high-quality education, the researchers provide recommendations for higher education intuitions and the U.S. Department of Education. The recommendations are:
- Including technology costs in financial aid and cost of attendance
- Collecting and publishing disaggregated data on student access to reliable internet and technology
- Strengthening broadband and technology supports for students
Positive Impacts from Accelerated College Credit Programs: Accelerated college credit programs have positive effects on student outcomes in Rhode Island, according to a new study from the Institute of Education Sciences' Regional Educational Laboratory Program. To understand the effect of these programs on high school completion rates and postsecondary outcomes, the researchers analyzed participation in dual enrollment, concurrent enrollment and AP testing programs using data from the 2013-14 9th grade student cohort in the state. They found that almost half of all students participated in at least one accelerated college credit program, however, students of color, male and lower income students were underrepresented in these programs. Another finding showed overall statistically significant, positive effects of participating in accelerated college credit options on students’ graduation rates, enrollment in postsecondary institutions and avoiding enrollment in developmental education courses during the first year of postsecondary education.
New Transfer Enrollment Trends in Postsecondary Education: Transfer enrollment in postsecondary institutions declined during COVID-19, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Researchers found that overall enrollment of postsecondary transfer students declined by 10% in spring 2021 compared to a year ago. These transfer declines were largely concentrated in community colleges, which saw a 16.3% decline in transfer enrollment. Four-year institutions only saw a 1.5% decline in enrollment transfers. Upward transfers from community colleges to four-year institutions increased by 1.5%.
Webinars on Implementation of Practices from Designing and Delivering Career Pathways at Community Colleges: In March of this year, the Institute of Educational Sciences’ What Works Clearinghouse released a practice guide, Designing and Delivering Career Pathways at Community Colleges, that provides community colleges with recommendations for supporting postsecondary occupational skills through career pathways. Since the release of the guide, the Clearinghouse has hosted three of six webinars on the implementation of practices from the guide. The first webinar covered recommendations and strategies from the guide and included the experts who contributed to the guide. The subsequent webinars each cover a practice guide recommendation and feature practitioners sharing their experiences implementing the recommendation. The first recommendation is to intentionally design and structure career pathways to enable students to further their education, secure a job, and advance in employment. The second recommendation is to deliver contextualized or integrated basic skills instruction to accelerate students’ entry into and successful completion of career pathways. Webinars on the third, fourth and fifth recommendations will be released later this year.
Comments